Great boarding schools offer pupils a home, not a place to sleep after work. People, not systems, must come first.
Bromsgrove provides continuity of education from Pre-Prep to the end of Sixth Form. Pupils can and do commence boarding at age 7 (Year 3). Each pupil is in a bespoke House relevant to their age and gender, each with live-in Houseparents. Our Prep School Boarding House, Page House, caters for 100 boys and girls aged 7 to 13.
Senior Boarding
In Senior School there are four single Boarding Houses and one co-ed Sixth Form House. All are large, comfortable, family homes run by resident Houseparents together with Assistant Houseparents and a team of dedicated Housemothers, tutors and ancillary staff. There are no exeat weekends at Bromsgrove so the School is busy every weekend, there are organised Saturday activities for all pupils whether boarding or day and most Sundays see boarders enjoying trips out to the cinema, shopping, theme parks and other local attractions. Bromsgrove is very well situated to access many open spaces and interesting historical and cultural destinations.
They will see a resident assistant houseparent (also a member of the academic staff) in each house and a dedicated tutor team, doing day and evening duties on a rota basis. Support, encouragement and trust are the watchwords. All meals are taken centrally (except for the evening meal at Housman Hall), so Bromsgrove’s thirteen day and boarding houses are continually integrating.
Activities are numerous and varied as befits a true boarding school. From high culture (trips to London and Stratford theatres) to paintballing, go-karting to concerts, Bromsgrove looks to inform, entertain and, occasionally, thrill its boarding community. But insisting boarders fill every second of a Sunday with organised activity is ridiculous, but so is leaving young people adrift with nothing to do. Some boarding schools become ghost towns at weekends. Bromsgrove does not.
To start with, we never close: there are no exeat weekends and so we guarantee a lively programme of weekend activities that are, for the most part, optional. Sport, Art and many recreational facilities are also open, and inevitably there will be rehearsals for plays and concerts. Bromsgrove looks to nourish its boarders without force feeding them.
During the holidays, there is the option for pupils to stay at School as part of the 'Guardian Angels' team on site. They can also return home or stay with their guardians. The School, of course, provides and organises transport services to airports whenever necessary.
We have a number of different nationalities within the boarding community, in the School as a whole there are over 70 different nationalities. Full integration into the boarding community is actively encouraged and achieved with help from the EAL department which provides small group lessons during the week as well as individual class support. EAL support is also provided for boarders in the evening to help with prep.
All Bromsgrove pupils, be they day or boarding, are attached to a House. The Houses are small communities of 13 to 18 year olds, usually consisting of around 60 pupils. (The only exception is Housman Hall, which is Sixth Form only). A Houseparent, Housemother and dedicated team of tutors and support staff are responsible for the well-being and happiness of pupils within the House.
Prep Boarding
At Bromsgrove Prep, the aspiration is that for boarders, the boarding house is a home from home. Residenti Houseparents are members of the teaching staff, and they are assisted by Housemothers (who oversee the domestic arrangeents) and non-resident House tutors. Boarding should be a joy, a confidience builder and a voyage of discovert. Occasional boarding is possible; we are flexible if boarders wish to go home on a Saturday night (most do not), and Sunday programmes are hugely varied.
Boarding at Bromsgrove Prep is so much more than the excellent teacher/pupil ratio one expects in a first class boarding school. A team of dedicated nurses under control of the School Doctor provides on site medical care in the School’s Health Centre; high quality varied food from chefs preparing three good meals a day (not a reheated import) is standard; and there are staff on hand twenty four hours a day, seven days per week.
Page House
In September 2012, Page House was opened for our Prep boarders, housing all of the pupils under one roof. This bigger house, for up to 100 pupils, has allowed us to expand our boarding numbers in response to demand for more places. The boarding house reflects the high standards of accommodation being achieved throughout the Senior School, ensuring that our youngest boarders also live in modern, top quality accommodation fit for the 21st century. Find out more about life in Page House here.
Boarding Options at Prep and Senior
Full Boarding
Full boarders make up the majority of the numbers within the Prep School. The full boarding fee per term covers any charges incurred as part of the Saturday morning activity programme and transport on all weekend trips. The only additional charge, in terms of boarding, is the entry fee for the weekend trips and a weekly amount for tuck. Our boarding houses offers a family atmosphere, with resident Houseparents and a Housemother ensuring there is always someone on hand twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. There is a laundry service for uniform and sports kit and evening activities, including use of the extensive facilities across the campus.
Weekly Boarding
As a weekly boarder, pupils stay at Bromsgrove Monday to Friday. Our extensive transport routes across Worcestershire and the wider West Midlands area offer families the flexibility of drop off at the nearest route on a Monday morning, and a return journey home on Friday afternoon. These transport costs are included in the weekly fee per term (current bus routes are available from the Transport Manager).
Weekly boarding is especially suitable for those pupils who live a reasonable distance away and for whom transport to and from school adds a considerable amount of time to an already busy day. Pupils also benefit from daily supervised prep and have all food provided and laundry taken care of during the week. When compared to the daily fee plus the transport fee, and the cost of food, weekly boarding is very competitive.
One-Term Placements
A Term to Remember at Bromsgrove School. Experience the very best of British Boarding with our one-term placements. We are delighted to welcome children aged 7-13 (Years 3-8) to take part in a full boarding experience for a term beginning in September, January or April.
- Connect with students from around the world
- Immerse yourself in an English-speaking environment
- Explore our world-class facilities
- Outstanding pastoral care with personalised guidance
- Clubs and activities that match your passions
- A campus full of opportunities, set within 100-acres
Taster Visits
For those considering boarding at Bromsgrove, we are more than happy to arrange taster days/weekends to give the children an opportunity to see if boarding life would suit them. Contact our Admissions team to arrange an individual visit and taster day.
Forces' Families
Bromsgrove Prep and Senior Schools have a long tradition of welcoming children of forces families. We are ideally located near the heart of the motorway network and so can be reached easily and quickly from any part of England. We are always happy to put prospective forces families in touch with parents of existing boarders so that they can get an alternative view point. We offer generous bursaries to forces families, the Educational Allowance can be added to with our means-tested bursaries. Read more about our Forces' Families offer here.
Guardian Angels during the School Holidays
During most holiday periods (except the long Christmas and Summer breaks), boarders can choose to stay at Bromsgrove in one of the Boarding Houses, staffed by our Guardian Angels team. There is a small additional cost per night, but most pupils enjoy the freedom of being able to stay on site in a familar environment without the hassle of arranging transport or flights.
